When the New York Jets made WR Mecole Hardman inactive in Week 5 against the Denver Broncos, despite Hardman being 100% healthy, the writing was on the wall.

Trade rumors began to swirl as the free agent addition went from seldom used to not even active on game day. Now, Hardman will be an ex-Jet in the very near future. And that's whether a trade materalizes or not, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini. If the Jets cannot find a trade partner, they will simply eat the cost and cut bait with Hardman.

“He's going to be gone. They are either going to trade him or cut him,” Cimini said on the ESPN podcast Flight Deck. “I think they realized that there is no plan for him & that they're going to try and do him a solid by sending him away to a team where maybe he can get on the field.”

Hardman spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Kansas City Chiefs. Known primarily as a deep threat, he never developed into much more than that, topping out at 59 catches for 693 yards in the 2021 season.

Following a lackluster 2022 season, Hardman hit free agency and signed a one-year contract worth a maximum of $6.5 million. The Jets thought enough of Hardman to ship WR Elijah Moore out to the Cleveland Browns in the same offseason.

But Hardman has been a non-factor for the Jets. He's got one catch for six yards in green and white. For the season, he has played in just 22 snaps on offense and two on special teams.

The speedster has seemingly fallen out of favor with the Jets' coaching staff. That coincided with undrafted WR Xavier Gipson taking on the role Hardman was expected to fill.

Hardman will be wearing another team's uniform shortly. Whether the Jets get anything for their trouble is another question.